Ten minutes later Jung Del entered the throne room and frowned at the pouty expression on Karniva’s gray face. “Don’t pull that face on me young lady,” he warned, snapping his teeth together lightly as he crossed the room to where she sat on the steps below the throne. “I have serious business to discuss with you and I need you to pay attention.”
“Now? In the middle of the night?” the girl asked petulantly, her wide mouth drawn down into a frown.
“I am leaving in less than three hours for Earth, so now is the only time available,” he explained.
“You’re leaving? Now?” Karniva demanded. “I don’t want you to leave. My birthday celebration only just began. There are still four more days, and you’re running off somewhere. That’s not fair. I want you to stay.”
“The woman who solved your mother’s murder and helped us to capture the man responsible, is in trouble,” Jung Del said with a low growl. “I must assist her as I am able.”
The pout fell from Karniva’s face at once, replaced by an expression of shame. “Of course you must go to her aid, Uncle,” she said, revealing the reason Jung Del had chosen her over her older sisters for queen. “Please forgive my behavior. There can be no more important matter for our family than assisting Ellicia Daniels. I am sorry to have acted so childishly.”
“You are a child,” Jung Del said, his anger instantly soothed by Karniva’s apology. “It is not wrong to act like one. I accept your apology, naturally. But I must go to Ellicia’s aid, and you must remain here and act responsibly while I am gone.”
“Of course, Uncle,” Karniva said. “I ask only that you give Miss Daniels my most sincere thanks when next you see her.”
“It will be my pleasure, Niece. Now, let us discuss a few important matters before I leave.”
“All right,” Karniva said, sitting up straight, an expression of concentration on her face, her black eyes focused intently on him. “I will listen, and I will remember.”
“Good girl,” Jung Del praised. As he began instructing Karniva in those matters that must be attended to in his absence, and those that could be put off, Jung Del was reminded of his sister at this age. He had loved her dearly, and her murder had been a painful blow to him. Only because of Ellicia Daniels had he been able to identify her killer. For that, he was forever in her debt, and even though this might not be the best time for him to leave, it was necessary. This was a matter of honor, and as such, could not be put off or gainsaid.
Chapter One
Faith Meyers hung back and watched as her fellow passengers crowded together near the exit. The idea of joining the press of bodies vying to be the first to exit the liner made her shudder inwardly, though she was careful to give no outward sign of her feelings. She’d didn’t know exactly what she’d do if that many strangers touched her at once, but it wouldn’t be pretty. Besides, what was the hurry? It wasn’t like there was a prize for those who got off the liner and into the Skyport first.
She started to hitch her duffle bag up higher on her shoulder, then dropped it to the floor next to her feet. It looked like it would be a while before that crowd got through the door. She might as well relax while she waited.
“Excuse me, Miss, but is there a problem?”
Faith’s heart leapt to her throat, nearly choking her with sudden fear. Get a grip! she admonished herself firmly. Never show fear. Never!
She gave the steward her most irritated frown, her hazel eyes narrowing. “No,” she replied shortly.
“I’m afraid all passengers must exit at this time,” he said.
“Obviously,” Faith replied. The steward stubbornly held his ground, not the least put off. She sighed with exaggerated patience. “I am not a cow, therefore I have no desire to join the herd. Once there’s enough room to walk through the doorway in a normal manner, then I’ll do so.”
“I see,” the steward replied. “Well um, I hope you had a nice journey.”
Faith lifted one shoulder in a noncommittal shrug and turned her attention back to the crowd, which appeared to be getting smaller. Either people were actually getting through the doorway, or some of them had passed out from the crush and fallen to the floor to be trampled by their fellow travelers.
She started to relax again before noticing that, while the steward had moved away, he was still watching her. She kept her eyes on the exit, determined to act as though the man didn’t exist. It wasn’t easy. Especially since every instinct she had was urging her to either run like hell, or attack him without warning, incapacitate him, and then run like hell.
She wondered what Grace would have done, and smiled to herself. Grace would have stared the man down without a trace of fear or embarrassment. Though she and Grace were identical twins on the outside, on the inside they were quite different. Grace had been serious, focused, goal oriented, and smart. Faith was none of those things. She was the relaxed, happy, go-with-the-flow girl.
That was who she had been, anyway. She wasn’t altogether sure who she was these days. What she did know was that she was no longer happy or relaxed. Nor did she think she ever would be again.
It took nearly half an hour for the exit to clear. By then the steward’s almost constant gaze had begun to feel like a physical weight pressing down on her. She picked up her duffle bag and headed through the doorway, struggling against the urge to run. Once she was out of the steward’s sight she paused, letting the relief wash through her as she took several long, slow breaths.
Feeling much better, she looked around, trying to get her bearings. This was not her first visit to Jasan, but her last trip had not been for pleasure, so she hadn’t spent any time exploring the planet during her stay. She spotted a Directory and took a few moments to read it. The shuttle down to the Jasani spaceport was due to leave in about fifteen minutes, so she hitched the duffle up on her shoulder and followed the arrows toward the appropriate shuttle bay.
As she walked along the circular outer hub of the Skyport she gazed out the huge viewports set in between the docking bays. She loved space. Always had. As a child she’d wanted to grow up to be a pilot. That was before she discovered she had no talent for either math or the sciences, and both were required. Grace used to say that since they were identical twins with identical brains, they should be able to do the same things with it. Since Grace had no trouble with either subject, she didn’t understand why Faith did and insisted that all she needed to do was apply herself.
Faith had applied herself. It just hadn’t done any good. Eventually she’d given up and changed her major to art history, pretending she’d lost interest so Grace would stop telling her she needed to try harder.
Faith checked her watch and picked up her step. If the planetary shuttle left early, she’d have a two hour wait for the next one. She passed another shuttle bay and checked the number posted in large numbers across the front of it. She was getting closer. The one she wanted should be next. She walked past the shuttle bay and looked out the next viewport, then froze in mid-step.
“Oh crappola,” she said softly. “Now that can not be good.”
***
Landor Bearen-Hiru made his way through the Jasani Skyport toward the outer ring where the shuttle bays were located, hoping this latest emergency wouldn’t take long. As Skyport Security Chiefs, he and his brothers split many of the duties on a rotating basis. Today was his turn to handle all so-called emergencies, and he hated it. It was like babysitting. No, he amended. He thought he might like it if the constant stream of tourists from all over the Thousand Worlds who came and went every day were babies. He liked babies.
He entered the outer ring, spotting a pair of uniformed guards standing near one of the large armored viewports. At first, he thought that the female standing with them was a teenager. But when she turned to face him, he saw that she was, in fact, a woman. A very pretty, petite woman with hazel eyes and long dark hair pulled back in a ponytail.
“Are you in charge here?” she asked, looking up at him without the sli
ghtest trace of fear even though he doubted that the top of her head would reach much higher than the middle of his chest.
“I’m the Chief of Skyport Security,” Landor replied. “Is there a problem, Miss?”
“Yes actually, there is,” the woman replied, turning to look out the viewport. “Look over there,” she pointed out into the darkness of space, a view he’d seen so many times it held no interest for him at all. He noticed that her hand was trembling slightly, and adjusted his initial impression. Her face was pale and her other hand was wrapped so tightly around the strap of her bag that her knuckles were white. He tested the air cautiously. She was nervous, maybe even afraid, though she did a very good job of hiding it.
“What am I supposed to be seeing?” he asked, gentling his voice.
“You don’t see it,” the woman said flatly.
“I don’t see anything out of the ordinary,” he replied. “What is it that you see?”
“A very strange looking ship that just came out of that jump point,” she replied.
Landor stared in shock, then studied the woman more carefully. She showed no signs of insanity that he could discern. Nor did she smell as though she were lying. Scared, maybe. Nervous, absolutely. Lying, no.
“You saw a ship come out of a jump point,” he said. “Just outside the Skyport.”
“Yes, I did, and it’s still there,” she replied. “I’m not crazy, and I’m not lying.”
“I believe you,” Landor said. “Can you describe the ship for me, please?”
The woman stared at him in surprise. She hadn’t expected him to believe her, he realized. Then she described a ship unlike anything he’d ever seen before. But others had seen it, and he’d read the descriptions.
The Xanti had a secret jump point not only into Jasani space, but right next to the Skyport. Damn! This woman could not only see it, but she also saw through the latest Blind Sight system. Double damn! He tested the air once more, just to be certain.
“Excuse me for one moment, please,” he said. He reached up and tapped the vox in his ear, stepping away from the woman and the guards. A few moments later he returned. “Let’s watch now, and see what happens,” he said. “If the ship moves, let me know.”
The woman nodded, and they both turned to look out the viewport. They only had to wait a few minutes before a System Patrol Ship came into view and made a bee line for the area the woman had pointed to.
“The ship just shifted upward,” the woman said.
Landor tapped his vox and murmured into it. The Patrol Ship shifted direction, aiming upward.
“Now it’s gone back down,” the woman said.
Landor spoke into the vox, and the Patrol Ship shifted direction again.
“It’s heading back toward the jump point now,” the woman said. She pointed, and Landor did his best to direct the pilot of the Patrol Ship.
Suddenly, for one, brief moment, they all saw the Xanti ship flash into sight. Then it shot forward and disappeared.
***
“What in the nine hells just happened?” Xi-Kung demanded, screaming into the comm link inside his makina.
“I’m not sure, Commander,” the captain replied, his voice high with fear. “I think they detected us.”
“What?!” Xi-Kung screamed. “How is that possible?”
“I’m checking all systems and reports, Commander,” the captain chittered nervously.
“You have two minutes to find an answer, Captain,” Xi-Kung snapped, then clicked off before the captain could respond. He needed those two minutes to collect himself. It would not be a good idea to slaughter his captain. Not now. He needed him to run the damned ship.
This had been a helluva day so far. First he’d had to report to Xaqana-Ti that he’d failed to destroy any of the females that made up what the Jasani referred to as the Three. He’d come close. So close that he’d been sure he’d succeeded. For a time.
After admitting his failure, he’d had to beg for a very long time to be allowed to return to the accursed planet to try again, when it was the last thing in two galaxies that he wanted to do. And now, just to top off the otherwise wonderful day he was having, his stars-damned captain had entered a portal and somehow allowed them to be seen! And not just any portal either. No, it couldn’t be a portal to a primitive world, or Onddo, or even Earth. It had to be Jasan. The one world that currently posed the biggest threat to the Xanti. The only world in the history of the Thousand Worlds to formally declare war against them.
Xi-Kung began pacing in an effort to help himself resist the nearly overwhelming urge to exit his makina. If he did that, he would give in to his rage, and go primal. Then he’d destroy the captain, and quite likely every other officer that had been on the bridge at the time of the current disaster. The confines of the makina forced him to remain in one place, effectively inhibiting his anger, and sparing his officers. But if the captain didn’t get back to him very soon, and with a good explanation for what had happened, he’d toss him out an airlock. In pieces.
“Commander,” the captain said, his voice calmer through the speakers in the makina.
“Speak,” Xi-Kung barked.
“Our Blind Sight system must be defective, Commander,” the captain reported. “I’ve reviewed everything. Blind Sight was activated, yet they clearly saw us. It’s the only explanation, Sir.”
Xi-Kung relaxed a fraction. Someone had made a mistake, and he’d find out who. But that someone hadn’t been his captain. Therefore, he didn’t have to kill him.
“Locate the closest service ship,” he ordered. “They’ll have to come to us since our Blind Sight is suspect.”
“There’s one that can be here in three days,” the Captain replied, revealing that he’d already checked. Xi-Kung was glad he hadn’t killed him. “The escort is one of Queen Narliq-Li’s battle cruisers, commanded by Orq-Nunq. I’ve already summoned them.”
“Good job, Captain,” Xi-Kung said. “Keep an eye on Terien. If they show any signs of awareness of our presence I want to know immediately.”
“Understood, Commander,” the captain replied.
***
“You see meta-space,” Landor said, not even trying to contain his shock.
“Yes,” the woman admitted reluctantly. Apparently it wasn’t news to her. “What I don’t understand is why couldn’t anyone else see that ship?”
Landor shook his head as he tried to decide how to handle this. What this small, human woman had just done was unbelievable. Miraculous even. If he scared her away, he doubted he’d soon be forgiven. “May I ask your name, please?”
“Faith Myers,” she replied. “I’m here to visit a woman named Hope Bearen, at a place called...,” the woman frowned and reached into the large bag hanging from her shoulder.
“Dracon’s Ranch,” Landor filled in for her.
“Yes, that’s right,” Faith said, her eyes narrowing suspiciously. “How did you know that?”
“Arima Hope and her Rami are my cousins,” Landor said.
“Oh, small planet,” Faith said. “Anyway, I missed my shuttle to the spaceport. Can you tell me when the next one will be?”
“Not for another hour,” Landor said. “Miss Meyers, if you don’t mind, I’d like to contact my cousins. They can be here in about three seconds, so it won’t take long.”
“Did you say three seconds?” Faith asked doubtfully.
“Yes,” Landor replied. “They’re the Bearen Consuls, in charge of Planetary Security, and I’m sure they’d like to speak with you. I can ask them to bring Hope with them, if you like.”
“Sure, that’s fine,” Faith said.
Landor smiled, then tapped his vox and made the call. As he waited for Clark Bearen to answer his vox he wondered if Miss Faith Meyers was an Arima. With her ability to see meta-space, he thought it likely. He couldn’t help feeling disappointed that she wasn’t his Arima. He and his brothers had babysat their adopted nephews, the Owlfen boys, several times, and it had them aching
for a family of their own. Miss Faith Meyers, with her petite figure, subtle courage, and amazing talents, was going to make some lucky male-set very happy.
Chapter Two
Tristan Falcoran hit the disconnect button on the dedicated secure-line vid terminal on his desk with more force than necessary, then leaned back in his chair and growled irritably.
“What?” Graysan asked from where he sat going over reports on his hand terminal.
“We’ve been summoned to the Dracon’s ranch,” Tristan said.
“Now?” Graysan asked in surprise.
“At our earliest convenience,” Tristan replied. The youngest of the three brothers, Jonathan, was a man of even fewer words than Graysan, but Tristan saw the question in his purple eyes and shrugged. “A human female has come forward claiming that she can see meta-space.”
Both Graysan and Jonathan stared in shock, but Tristan shook his head. “I don’t believe it,” he said. “I’ve never heard of such a talent, and consider it to be highly improbable. I don’t know what this woman’s game is, but it seems she’s got the Bearens and the Dracons convinced. We are to attend a meeting on the matter this afternoon.”
Jonathan shook his head, then rose to his feet and went to stand at the office viewport, facing away from his brothers as he stared out at the stars.
“What is it, Jonathan?” Tristan asked.
“Not all females are to be distrusted,” he said in a low voice with no inflection.
Tristan thought of several responses to that statement, but refrained from voicing them. “We need to leave now if we are to arrive on time,” he said. “Gray, have the VTOL prepared, and let Captain Rolin know we’ll be taking the shuttle down to the surface in ten minutes.” His vox beeped and he reached up to tap it. After listening for a moment he held one hand up toward Gray, stopping him from making the calls he’d just ordered.
The Falcoran’s Faith Page 2
